237 minute running time, that’s right, THREE HOURS AND 57 MINUTES, so it’s a real slog … 1960s Taiwan, I guess there were a lot of street gangs and juvenile delinquency and this kid from a respectable family falls into it … even for someone who has an interest in Chinese history like me, most of this movie was hard to sit through, just sort of boring until the shocking end. No idea why Criterion thinks it’s a “singular masterpiece.” This was a John Farr reco.